Centrifugal slime-filter.



B. W. DURFEE.

GENTRIPUGAL SLIME. FILTER.

APPLICATION FILED J'ANJG, 1906.

FVITNESSES: I :INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

THE NORRIS PETERS C31. wAsHma-mn, m 1:

PATENTED SEPT. 18, 1906. V

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

110 831,382. PATENTED SEPT. 18, 1906. E. W. DURFEE.

GENTRIFUGAL SLIME FILTER.

APPLIOATION TILED JAN.16, 1906,

2 $HBET8-SHEET 2.

WITNESSES: INVENTOR.

ATTOR 1.

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slimes from the cyanid treatment of UNITED STATES ELMER w. DURFEE, or SALIDA, COLORADO.

CENTRIFUGAL SLIME-FILTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 18, 1906.

Application filed January 16, 1906. Serial No. 296,420.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELMER W. DURFEE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Salida, in the county of Chaffee and State of Colorado, have invented new and useful Improvements in Centrifugal Slime-Filters, of which the followin is a specification.

My invention refates to an apparatus for filtering slimes or other material arising from treatment of ores by cyanid or other processes, and it is especially designed to filter gold ores.

It consists in the combination of mechanism and in details of construction which will be more fully explained by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a plan of the apparatus. Fig. 2 is a vertical section through as an of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan detail of the filter-belt-driv ing mechanism and discharge. Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical section to one side of the apparatus.

The machine consists of a revoluble wheel carrying a series of vertically-disposed rollers on its periphery, upon the inside of which rollers a belt of duck or other suitable filtering medium is supported, so that the slimes which are thrown outwardly by the rapid centrifugal rotation of the carrying-wheel are forced through thebelt and are discharged at suitable intervals around the periphery of the apparatus.

The wheel is constructed of two chanthe other neled pieces 4, located one above and forming a space between them, as plainly shown in Figs. 2 and 4. These channeled rings may be made of boilerplate, and the concaved sides face each other and are held together by shoulder-bolts 5, (shown in the planview,) and the bolts and cap-screws, which secure the receptacle for catching the filtered slimes. This device is connected with an iron hub 6 by means of steel rods okes 8, (well shown in the plan view,) and t e hub is mounted upon a vertical central shaft 7. Between the annular channels are fifty, more or less, white-pine rollers 3, which revolve on vertical shafts 9, extending through the upper and lower members of the channel-iron rim, which form bearings for the same. The rollers are driven by means of a link belt 10, which asses around a s rocketwheel 11, mounte upon the bus g or sleeve 25, as shown in Fig. 3. From this the link belt or chain passes over directionsprockets, as at 11*, from which it passes around above the upper channel-annulus 4 and engages with sprockets 2, fixed to shafts 9, upon which the rollers 3 are carried, thus acting to revolve the rollers around the whole periphery of the apparatus.

The filtering-belt 12 is continuous, having a width vertically equal to the length of the rollers 3, and it lies against the interior surface of these rollers, against which it is held by the centrifugal force of rotation. This belt is caused to move slowly and at a dif ferent rate of speed from that of the revolving portion of the apparatus by means to be hereinafter described. At opposite sides of the apparatus the belt 12 passes out between two of the rollers 3, as plainly shown in Fig. 3, and into receptacles at 14, carried with and located outside of this portion of the apparatus. Within this portion of the apparatus are situated other rollers 3*, around which the belt 12 passes within the receptacle 14, and thence returns around the inner rollers 3 and into the interior of their line of travel. This belt thus carries the material collected by it during its slow advance around One-half of the revolving apparatus and discharges it into the collector 14, the slimes or heavy portions being caught upon the inside of the belt and the filtrate passing through it. a The belt after its return into the interior of the apparatus again commences to collect and separate the slimes from the filtrate until it arrives at the opposite side, when a like discharging operation is effected. The machine thus operates continuously.

The apparatus may be mounted upon a suitable frame, as at A, and driven by belts from the vertical counter-shaft 15, which counter-shaft is driven by gears 16 from the horizontal power-shaft 17. The mixed slimes and solution are first fed into an annular receptacle 18, carried upon the central portion and around the hub of the apparatus. From this receiver or feed-box pipes 19 lead outwardly, as shown, and discharge into vertically-disposed annular distributers 20. Each distributer has perforations upon the outside, as shown, and through these perforations the mixture is distributed upon the traveling filter-belt. The feed-box has an outer compartment 21, and this may be supplied either with water or with a separate cyanid solution in case it is desirable to employ such a solution. This compartment 21 is connected by pipes 22 with the receptacle IIO channel of the revolving wheel, and from this point they are delivered into the inner compartment 23 of the chamber 14. From this point they are delivered through a dischargepassage 23 as shown at the lower left-hand side of Fig. 2. The solution or filtrate is received into the outer compartment 23 of the chamber 14 and is delivered through a pipe, as at 24, which may be secured in the lower part and outer periphery of the chamber. The separated products may be delivered at any desired time. As herein shown, the apparatus is so constructed as to deliver them alternately at opposite sides. The feed-box 18 is supported upon the hub or central portion of the wheel and is connected, by means of feed-pipes 19, with the distributer, as previously described. The whole revolves together. The central support of the feed-box has openings made through it, through which the link driving belt or chain 10 passes out to the periphery, as previously described. A bushing 25 is fitted upon the central shaft 7 and extends up through the lower pulley 26, which is keyed to it and receives motion from the driving-pulley 26 on the counter-shaft f 15. Above this is another pulley 26 of slightly smaller diameter than the pulley 26, this also receiving motion by means of a belt from the pulley 26.

The central sprocket-wheel 11 is secured to the bushing or sleeve 25, and through it motion is transmitted to the rollers which carry the interior belt. By reason of the difference in diameter of the pulleys 26 26 it will be seen that although both receive motion from a single pulley 26 one will move faster than the other, and the apparatus which is revolved by the pulley 26 fixed to the shaft 7, will travel more slowly than the belt-driving apparatus driven by the pulley 26 upon the sleeve 25. Thus a comparatively slow relative motion is transmitted to the filtering-belt.

The operation of the apparatus will then be as follows: The mixed slimes and solutions are fed to the filtering-belt as it passes the distributing pipes or chambers at opposite points, as plainly shown in the plan view, and the slow motion of the filtering-belt relative to the velocity of revolution of the apparatus carries the slimes around until they reach the opposite side of the apparatus,

' where the belt passes out into the deliverychamber, as previously described. The filtering will thus take place during the entire travel of the filtering-belt, and a thorough separation will thus take place. The ma chine is designed to run at such speed that the centrifugal force will be sufiicient to separate the solution from the slimes, the solution passing through the belt and the slimes being retained upon the inside surface to be afterward discharged, as previously described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In an apparatus for the filtration of slimes, the combination of a horizontallyrevoluble portion, a unitary belt concentric with said revoluble portion and arranged on edge, a concentric series of relatively closely arranged members against which the exterior of the belt is supported, and means for delivering material to be separated against the inner face of the belt by centrifugal force.

2. In an apparatus for filtering slimes, the combination of a horizontally-revoluble central portion, an endless belt substantially concentric with said central portion and arranged on edge, a series of supports sur- I rounding the outer periphery of said belt and against which the exterior of the belt is supported, a centrally-disposed receiver and means for delivering material therefrom against the inner face of the belt, said belt and central portion being movable together in the same direction and at different rates of speed.

3. In an apparatus for the filtration of slimes, the combination of a horizontallyrevoluble central portion, a unitary belt concentric with said central portion and arranged on edge, a concentric series of relatively closely arranged members against which the exterior of the belt is supported, means for delivering material to be separated against the inner face of the belt by centrifugal force, and means to cause said belt to travel at a different rate of speed from that of said central portion.

4. In an apparatus for the filtration of slimes, a horizontally-revoluble portion having vertical rollers journaled around its periphery, an endless belt supported on edge against said rollers, mechanism by which the central portion is caused to revolve at one rate of speed, and by which the belt is caused to travel in the same direction at a different rate of speed, an annular feed-box carried upon the hub of the central portion, delivery-pipes extending outwardly therefrom, distributing-pipes with which the delivery-pipes connect, said distributing-pipes being vertically supported contiguous to the inner face of the belt whereby the material is spread upon the slowly-moving belt.

5. In an apparatus for the filtration of slimes, a horizontally-revoluble ortion, a concentric feed-receptacle revolu le therewith having outwardly-extending deliverypipes, vertically-disposed perforated distributers with which said pipes connect, vertically-journaled rollers around the periphery of the central portion, an endless filteringbelt supported on edge against said rollers contiguous to the distributing devices, mechanism by which said belt is caused to travel in the same direction and at a rate of speed slightly in excess of that of the central portion whereby the material to be filtered is gradually distributed against the belt, an exterior receptacle traveling in unison with the central portion, means for causing the belt to travel around within said receptacle, and means for separating the slimes and filtrate within said chamber.

6. In an apparatus for the filtration of slimes, a horizontally-revoluble portion, a slime-receiver movable concentrically therewith, delivery -pipes extending outwardly from said receiver, vertically-disposed perforated distributing-pipes with which the delivery-pipes connect, an endless filtering-belt and rollers by which it is supported around the exterior of the revoluble portion and contiguous to the distributing-pipes, mechanism by which said belt is caused to travel at a slightly higher rate of speed, and in the same direction with the central portion, an exterior chamber, vertically disposed rollers therein around which the belt passes from the interior rollers, a passage leading there from through which the separated slimes are discharged, and a separate exterior passage through which the filtrate is discharged.

7. In an apparatus for the filtration of slimes, a horizontally-revoluble portion, said portion consisting of annular channel-iron superposed parts with facing concaved portions and supporting-bolts, rollers journaled vertically between said upper and lower parts, an endless belt supported on edge against said rollers, a centrally-located receiver with radial deliverypipes, perforated distributing-pipes with which the deliverypipes connect and which are disposed to discharge against the inner face of the belt, mechanism by which the belt is caused to travel in the same direction and at a slightly greater rate of speed within the supporting ers vertically j ournaled around the periphery, i

an endless belt supported on edge by the rollers, an exterior chamber movable in unison with the main portion and into which the filter-belt is caused to pass, a feed-chamber rotatable with the main portion and having concentric chambers, a discharge-pipe and distributers through which the material is delivered upon the belt, other pipes connecting the exterior chamber with the interior chamber to supply a wash to cleanse the belt of the slimes.

9. In an apparatus for the filtration of slimes, the combination of a central horizontally-revoluble portion with centrallysup.

ported feed-chambers, radial pipes and distributers, a unitary endless belt concentric with said central portion and arranged on edge, a concentric series of vertically-journaled rollers formin a support for the outer side of the belt an against which the belt travels contiguous to the distributers, and means whereby the central portion and belt are given a variable travel in the same direc tion.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ELMER W. DURFEE.

Witnesses F. A. PHILBRICK, J. MACGINNIS. 

